Time to Duel: Romancing Victory
by kissmesoftlytillidie
Summary: Yama's just a normal girl, likes Duel Monsters and writing fantasy. But what happens when she meets one of her favorite duelists of all time, Jounouchi Katsuya? Entries from her diary tell the story as no no else could: a first hand encounter of fate!
1. First Move: Sunday's Reality

Sunday

Today was a very interesting day. I fell asleep in the park as I was relaxing and taking a break from studying for the upcoming high school entrance exam. Which reminds me, Jounouchi-san would be going into his final year of high school, isn't he? Perhaps, now that I have met him, I have a chance of getting help in my first year.

I opened my eyes slowly. I felt as if I was falling asleep, rather then awakening. The feeling was amplified by the face I saw leaning above me. It was a very recognizable face, it had been plastered onto television screens for years. I couldn't really say anything. "Hey, are you okay? You fell asleep and spilled your drink." I sat up, slowly, having the feeling you get when you sleep on concrete, even though the bench I was sitting on was solid wood. My cup, full of ice water, had indeed tipped over, and so I righted the Styrofoam and flicked the last ice chunks onto the grass.

"I'm fine." I stretched my hands up into the sky, popping my fingers and a shoulder. "Ahh!" I gasped, yawning as well. Then I turned to look at him. "Pleased to meet you, Jounouchi Katsuya-san. Thank you for waking me." I hid a smile behind my hand as I looked at his flabbergasted face.

"H-how do you know my name?" He stuttered, and I had to giggle, even though it was rude.

"But, Katsuja-san, you are always on the television, fighting with Yuugi Motou and Seto Kaiba. Everyone knows who you are."

"I must admit, you're my first fan." Jounouchi had a smile on his face as well, and so I didn't feel so rude smiling at him. I stood up, and looked at my left wrist. I put my watch there because my right hand lost circulation when I put so much weight on it. I needed my hand for writing, and also for dueling, so I wouldn't harm it. In fact, it was probably the excess of writing that made it weak. Who knows?

"I am rather glad. That way, I can always say I was the first." But that was rash, and I bowed to him, a short but honorable bow. My black hair with its purple spiky tips brushed against my face, and made me blink lightly several times. "Perhaps you will allow me, then, the honor of buying you an ice cream to celebrate."

I could tell that the idea agreed with him, so I picked up my cup and threw it like a basketball player at the trashcan. It landed near the center, but because a lid covered the top with a hole in the very center, it stayed on top. "Too bad," he complained for me, and threw the wrapper of my candy bar at it. They hit each other, and bounced into the hole. "Yeah! Jounouchi Katsuya strikes again." Oh, how he made me giggle. Then he turned to me and pointed across the grass. "That vendor serves the best ice cream in Domino City. Let's start there and see how much we can eat, huh?"

"Okay. But I'm not paying for both of us if you want to compare our stomachs, Katsuya-kun."

"Just call me Jounouchi. And what can I call you?"

"Ahh!" I gasped again. I forgot my name in all my haste. Bowing repeatedly, I spoke quickly. "My name is Kaimaru Yama, pleased to meet you."

"Stop, stop, you're making me dizzy, Yama-san." He put his hands on my shoulders and made me stop, which surprised me. "Let's go get some ice cream."

"Alright, Jounouchi-san. Let's get some ice cream." The ice cream really was delicious, and we ended up parting ways as I went home to study and he went to meet his friends. We promised to meet each other tomorrow. I really can't wait!


	2. Your Move: Monday's Impossibility, pt 1

Author Notes:

To my dear reviewers: Thanks for reading, and love and hugs. I noticed a grammatical error in yesterday's update. I wrote Katsuja instead of Katsuya. My computer needs to check these things better, raar! But it's my fault that Katsuya wasn't in my dictionary. I've added it, along with the other names, so hopefully that will help.

Monday

Today was the entrance exam for the high school I'm planning to enter. But that wasn't the exciting part (in fact, it was terrifying). Today, I got to see Jounouchi and Yuugi duel! They go to the same school as I'm planning to get into! As soon as I arrived, I saw them, and I was ready to squeal and run around in circles. I settled with calling their names, but of course I called Motou-san instead of Yuugi! I don't know him at all yet (well I didn't then.

They turned to me, and Yuugi Motou smiled. He was much nicer then he is when he's dueling, and I think his eyes are a different color, too….

Anyway, it was weird. I should say exciting, who cares about his eyes when you get to be in the presence of greatness.

"You must be Kaimaru-san. Pleased to meet you," he said, and I swooned. It wasn't just because of Motou-san, it was because Jounouchi looked so handsome in his uniform. "Pleased to meet you," I said, but I was looking at Jounouchi-san.

"What are you doing here, Yama-chan?" Jounouchi asked, and I squealed and blushed.

"Jounouchi-san!"

"Jou, what are you doing, you just met her!" A hand shot out and caught Jounouchi around the neck. It must have been Jounouchi's friend, cause he was teasing him something silly.

"Hi, I'm Anzu, pleased to meet you. Jounouchi told us all about you. He's excited to have a fan." Anzu, who had appeared from behind them, extended her hand.

"Pleased to meet you, I'm Kaimaru Yama." I shook her hand with a short bow and a smile. "I'm here to take the entrance exam. Is he okay?" I asked, pointing at Jounouchi with my other hand.

"Oh, he'll be fine. Those two are always goofing around!" Yuugi walked up to us. "You'll like it here, Kaimaru-san. You can hang out with us."

"Eh!" I blushed again. This people were so nice, and so famous at the same time. So nice guys can be famous after all! I really was totally surprised at it.

"Now who's being forward, Yuugi?" Anzu poked him in the ribs and he blushed. "Well its okay with me. But Yama better get going now if she doesn't want to be late for her exam. We'll see you later. You're meeting Jounouchi in the park, anyway, right?" I nodded, and ran off to my exam. School's already out, and I have to meet Jounouchi-san soon, but I want to tell you who I ran into in my hurry to get to the exam hall. It was (character Kai)

Sorry got to go. My phone is ringing.

Author's Note. I put (character Kai) because my computer doesn't support Japanese characters, and that way there wouldn't be a cliff hanger either.


	3. It's my turn now: MI part 2

Monday Evening

I know, I know, I said I'd be right back, but you're my diary, what's it matter to you? Heh… In any case, I went out to the park before I could finish writing, because well, it was time to go. I can't believe my luck today, running into Seto Kaiba and then getting to see all of Joey's friends. Yes, it was Kaiba-san I ran into, and I wanted to squeal and blush again, but the look on his face as I fell on the floor froze my face. He wasn't at all as nice looking as Jounouchi or Yuugi, not at all…. He was so mean to me. All he said was "Watch your step, girl." Then he huffed off. I had to stand up quickly to bow my apology to him before he was out of sight, and my breath was still hard coming.

But going to see Jounouchi today, made me feel better, and I won't go into the rant I was going to write before the phone rang. It seems too ridiculous now. Instead I'll tell you about seeing Yuugi and Jounouchi duel each other.

It was really exciting, and it made me love my small deck even more. Even though Yuugi won, Jounouchi had him until the last moment, and vice versa. It was so full of action. I really must get all three magicians, but all I need now is the Chaos Magician. After the duel, we went to Motou-san's house, and guess what, it's a game shop. It seems very fitting.

I know I'm not adding very much detail, but I can't stop thinking about the look on Kaiba-san's face. His face is very different close up, and he looks crueler then he does on camera. I guess I hoped that his anger would be a publicity think for his company (girls do swoon more in front of a rough and rich kind of guy, even if no one says it out loud). In any case, Motou-san's grandfather gave me Dark Magician to go with my Dark Magician Girl, to celebrate my first visit to the shop, and I bought lots of cards I saw Yuugi and Jounouchi use, as well as some of Anzu's favorites that were very cute. When I went to say thank you, I felt a little confused for a second, because then there would be two Motou-sans, but Yuugi's grandfather smiled at me, and he said "You can just call me Grandpa, everyone does," just like that, and put the Dark Magician on top of my cards. It was so sweet, I started crying in front of all those boys. How stupid I felt, but I couldn't stop crying.

"Yama-san, what's wrong?" Yuugi asked me in his gentle voice.

"I'm sorry, Motou-san…," I started, "but everyone's just so nice to me, and we only met today, and you're so different from I'd thought you be, and Kaiba-san was so mad at me--!" I stopped, unable to say more, and Jounouchi made a fist.

"Kaiba! That insensitive bastard, what did he say to you, I'll give him a piece of my mind!"

"Wait, Joey, let the girl talk!" Honda-san grabbed Jounouchi by the arms, rather like he did in the morning.

Yuugi just smiled, and put a hand on my arm. "What did he say, Yama-san? Kaiba can be pretty rude sometimes, but that's just how he is."

"Well it was really all my fault, because I ran into him, but" my eyes were tearing up again, and stinging in the corners, and I had to stop talking. "I really want to go to your school and I was so happy and then he and it was like bang! I'm sorry…."

"It's okay. It's hard to start at a new school," Anzu said, "and a jerk like Kaiba doesn't make it any easier. Hey, I know, let's us girls go hit the mall. Our friend Mai can take us, I have her number on my cell phone. We'll go after school tomorrow, okay? Just meet me at the park again."

I can't wait for tomorrow!


	4. Magic Card: Mystery Dresses admire Mai

Tuesday

I'm not scared, not at all. I'm not scared. I have to write it down to prove it to myself. Today, when we were at the mall, me, Anzu, and Mai, we were harassed by a bunch of street-quality yazuka. They were pressing up against us and Mai was so strong, just the greatest in the whole world. I admire her so much. After they were gone, it took me a while, but I began to shop. I brought all of my savings, really, because I needed so much stuff! Especially something fancy. I was trying one dress on for Mai and Anzu. It was gold, and there was a black eye of Horus on the tag. The sleekness seemed like something out of Egypt, the linen cloth woven with very fake gold. At least we thought it was fake.

"What is this made of, ma'am?" I asked the store manager, who was in the front helping customers since it was busy.

"That one," he said, eyeing the dress (I was very embarrassed as I was still wearing it), "I've never seen that before. Does it have a price tag?"

"No, it doesn't," Mai said quickly. She didn't like him eyeing me either, and Anzu stood half in front of me. "But if it isn't yours, then someone left it here from another store."

"But Mai," Anzu said, "I've never seen anything with an Eye of Horus on the tag before."

"I have a book of companies with their tags and information," the manager said, who was looking away then. "I'll look it up. I just got the updated version from the main branch yesterday, so I should be able to find it." When he came back he was shaking his head. "I can't find it. It must be hand made, so just keep it. If it was here long enough to be put on a hanger and displayed, the owner must have forgotten it."

We took the dress and had the gold threads looked at (while I wasn't wearing them) and it was real. Then we came here to drop off my stuff and while Anzu's in the bathroom I'm writing as fast as I can and going to Yuugi's in all of our brand new outfits. Perhaps I'll be able to write again tonight. If not I'll see you in the morning and tell you all about it!


	5. Attack her life points directly!

Author's note: So here we go! Finally the plot begins.

Wednesday Morning

I know that something is very wrong now, and I don't know how we're going to fix it, but it seems I've been dragged into something bigger then myself. Before we left yesterday, to go to see all the boys, and while we were admiring ourselves in the mirror, something came into the mail. Since I live mostly on my own when my parents are in America on business (they're import/export managers at the company they work for), I have a maid who comes in for an hour once a week to help me with the dusting and all the heavy duty spider webs that have been popping up more and more lately. Anzu-san says she's been having trouble with them too, and Mai just looked at them askance. She says the pattern of the webs looks familiar.

When the maid came in, she had mail for me. It's weird, because this mail was from a place I'd never heard of, and a company that didn't exist. Eventually, after Mai and Anzu mused about it for a while, we decided not to open it, but to take it to Yuugi's to see if they knew anything about it.

We had to go pretty fast in Mai's car, to get there before we got left out, and I felt my hair whip out of shape. My spikes got stiffer and further apart as the wind whipped into the gel I used to keep them pointing down, and the straightening iron was useless now. My bangs curled and spiked into a style I realized was much like Yuugi's as I tried to fix it in the mirror.

"Girlfriend, you're never going to be able to fix that without some tools," Mai told me. "You're going to be looking like Yuugi before we get there."

"What do I do, Mai-san? Anzu-san, do something!" Anzu sighed and thought for a deadly second.

"Oh I know, use the clip I bought today in that artifact store. The guy said that it belonged to some princess of Egypt or something, but it matches your dress." The clip fit perfectly around my bangs, and made it so that at least the more wild hairs stayed in place.

"It matches your outfit too," I told Anzu. Her outfit is very nice. We looked very hard for her top, which is a gold see through and sparkly sleeveless that hangs loosely over a tight long sleeved black silk. "You look like a dancer." Anzu smiled, because she had told me she wanted to be a dancer.

At Yuugi's house we immediately showed them the card. None of them knew what to do about it. Yuugi thought we should call Seto Kaiba, and Honda thought we should go to the library. "Argh! Why are we getting so worked up about a letter? I'm just going to open it!" Jounouchi grabbed the letter from Yuugi and tore open the seal. A card fell out, and Jounouchi took out a blank piece of paper with a rectangle the size of a duel monster's card on it.

"What is it, Yuugi?" I asked him as he picked it up. "Ah!" I said as he froze and looked over his shoulder. "That's the seal of Orichalcos, isn't it?" I asked quietly. Even though I was just a follower, and not a very good player, I'd seen that symbol before.

"Yama, how do you know about the seal?" Jounouchi asked, grabbing my arms.

"Jounouchi-san!" I gasped out. "Please, I'm sorry, let go of me." I thought I was going to cry. "I know about the seal because my parents used to work for Paradisa, in the business department. They left, before Leviathan came, but they knew. They heard Dartz talking about it to his duelists all the time. That's why they left! Look, please, I didn't do anything wrong! You're hurting me!" He let go of me and I fell to the ground.

"I'm sorry, Yama," he said quietly, and I blushed. He was calling me Yama. "I'm sorry, okay? We have some bad memories around that card, that's all."

"Jou," Yuugi said to his friend, "it makes sense that normal people would have to be a part of Paradisa if it was as big a company as Kaiba said it was."

Jounouchi-san nodded. "Yeah."

"What does it mean?" Anzu asked. "Why would someone send you this card, Yama?"

"I don't know." I shook my head wildly. I remember how my shoulders shook as well, and how Jounouchi's large, warm hands moved to my shoulders.

"It's okay Yama," Honda said as he looked at the piece of paper that came with the card. "We'll figure it out, and I know how."

"How?" Yuugi asked him, and everyone looked at him.

"We're going to see Pegasus." he said, then flipped the paper around to show us. On the page was the I squared watermark of Industrial Illusions."

So now we are on a plane to San Francisco, and then on to Pegasus, and I don't know how we're going to get out of the mess we'll be in when we get back. At least my parents are out of town, because I have to know what's going on. At least I am here with five legal Japanese adults, even if they are still teenagers. That will ease their minds. Will they ever believe me when I tell them about this?


	6. PAuSiNG

Thursday Morning

We have spent a lot of time running around this state, trying to find Pegasus. Even though everyone has been there before, Honda lost the map and that ruined everything. We would have been fine in Japan, but all of the street signs were in English and Yuugi was the only one who spoke it any good. I could speak it, but I can't read it (that makes me feel so illiterate), and Honda was like this way no this way no this way! It was Mai who go us anywhere. She used to live here, back during the time of the great Leviathan.

On the train Yuugi-san and I spent a lot of time talking about the seal, and he told me more about the pharaoh, Atemu, who used to reside in his puzzle. I knew about him, even though most people who saw him duel thought it was just some split personality. Do you remember, that day, when I was excited about Duelist Kingdom finals? It was one of Yuugi's first shadow duels, and since then they had fought all the time with evil. I went to the museum before I could see Leviathan in the sky, and I remember Atemu and Set's faces now.

For some reason I really want Atemu to come back, I want to meet him.

Since I am writing this in the Industrial Illusions building, and everyone is talking to Pegasus right now, I am very nervous. Pegasus said he was too busy until we told him about the card, and then he said he wanted to talk to me alone. I'm too afraid to write down what he said right now, but I'll have to eventually. It's the only way I'll be able to fully understand it. Jounouchi is yelling at Pegasus for frightening me. Oh, I like Jounouchi-san so much! I want to hug him, he has been so nice and understanding and opening doors for me and all that. We will go to the hotel now, and then I will continue after lunch, telling you what is happening.


	7. To place my hand on my deck

Author's note...

Kaiba is pretty mean sounding in this chapter, but I love Kaiba, so don't be out of wack or anything. Yama's personal experiences make her write about him like this...

Yama still doesn't know who the strange company following her around is, but she has found out something any way. Egypt is not a very friendly place sometimes, especially when you're drawn to Yuugi Motou, Jounouchi, and Seto Kaiba... it usually means you had a connection to them before sigh

I'm sorry if this turned out unlike your imaginings, but this is what ended up happening. Some things are cliffhangers if you're writing like a diary, and some things aren't. Some things are just sudden abrupt changes because that's how life is some times, and sometimes it's slow cause that's how things are. This, although hard to explain, is Yama's life after she met her favorite celebrities.

Thursday Evening:

Some things never change, and Yuugi tells me Pegasus is one of them. Even though he lost his eye and his company and his soul... he isn't very nice at all. Jounouchi-san was furious all day, and it was only after lunch while we were eating sweet cinnamon rolls that he calmed down enough to ask me what exactly Pegasus had said. I told him, in very many words, how Pegasus thought I was a descendant of the Pharaoh. Apparently the princess of Egypt was a special soul that got revived ever five thousand years, and in her past two lives she was the daughter of Dartz and the granddaughter of the Pharaoh. I didn't believe it, but he made me so angry. He said every one that has any attraction to Yuugi, Jounouchi or Kaiba-san has a connection to the pharaoh. How can this be, if the pharaoh is gone, I asked. He said how does anyone know he's gone for good...

He said that I was also the destroyer of the modern day world; he said that a group of men was seeking me out to make me a princess of the shadow games... I can't even duel as well as the worst in Duelist Kingdom and Battle City, I'm sure! He said it didn't matter, that it would come to me and I had better make my side known and all sorts of things and then I threw the vase on his desk at the wall. That was why Jounouchi was so mad.

I don't know what to say. I'm just a normal person, so very normal... How could I be a princess, dearest diary? I ask you so many questions and you never answer...

Now I am crying, and its all your fault! Oh, no it's not; you're just pages in a book... a notebook with a blue cover and black lining, but still just a blank book, after all. Jounouchi and my relationship have strained against each end, so that the middle is tight and ready to snap.

This afternoon, we tried to discuss it, but Jounouchi stomped out of the room and then I had to leave because I was crying. I was pacing in front of the hotel, staring at the seal in my hand, and then of course I ran into Kaiba-san again. I fell right on my butt, into a puddle, and the card flew out of my hand and slid along the sidewalk. "No!" I shouted, very dramatically, and dove for it. Kaiba stepped on it and picked it up. I felt so weak, crouching there with my lower body covered in dirty water, and he had the card in his hand. The seal was facing me, and I couldn't let him see that side. I stood up, taking a menacing position that I didn't really mean. "Give it back, now!" I was shouting at Kaiba-san! He would kill me, I thought, but then he recognized me.

"You," he said, "this better not be stalking, or I will call the police." He spoke in perfect and rapid English.

"Of course it's not," I replied in Japanese, feeling like my English was too imperfect. "I was here to see Pegasus Crawford, not Kaiba-san. Please give me back that card."

"There's no need to be hasty. What is it anyway?" He began to flip it over, but I grabbed it, and it tore in half. But it wasn't good enough... he saw the bottom and glared at me. "Why does a pipsqueak like you have this card?" he asked in a loud, angry voice. I thought I was going to faint. My stomach still hurts thinking about it.

"Give it back, Kaiba," came Jounouchi's voice, and I spun around to see him closing the door, letting it swing lazily. "It's hers after all!"

"Why, hello mutt. I should have known you geeks would hang out with this clumsy nerd."

I gasped. He may not like me, but to call all of us such names... It made me very sad. I wanted both to sock him in the nose and hug him and kiss out all of his wrinkles! How could someone so cute be so mean?

Jounouchi must have hit him because of my gasp, or maybe because my clothes were soaked through and Kaiba-san was still making fun of me. Kaiba dodged it, mostly, almost expecting it, it seemed.

I covered my eyes, so I don't really remember anything, just a lot of noise and splashing of feet in puddles. I was trembling, and curled up into a ball, almost, my knees at my nose. Knees, nose, knees, nose, it adds a poeticism to the day that wasn't actually there. When I next moved, it was to lash out, as some one touched me. It was Jounouchi, though...

"Maybe I deserved that...," he said in his rich voice. "Look, I'm sorry you got caught up in all this. The seal is a bomb waiting to blow. So your first impressions of us aren't very good. Even Kaiba," he said, as if he didn't want to. "It was the only time he ever accepted the magic of the duels he'd been fighting. In the end, he never played a shadow game before that. It's weird, but Pegasus only ever had a real chance at him. Pegasus stole his soul too... during Duelist Kingdom. He thought it was hypnotism and all this crazy stuff and--" I interrupted him.

"Jounouchi-san, you're rambling." I said quietly. But he made me feel better, and then I changed and we spent the day trying to get around the city, complaining about how much a yen was to a dollar and spending all of our money for the trip on American clothing, food, and even makeup and jewelry. There was a lot of Japanese stuff at the stores, but really... the computers were outdated compared to the one my parents bought me for high school in April. I wonder if they know. We giggled about it in Japanese until they came and asked us what was wrong. Jounouchi spoke to him in rapid Japanese about rain on white days and bunnies living in the center of the earth and the cat on the moon and did he play a fiddle? It made the whole day go away to see his face as he told us he'd have to get a manager. Motou-san took pity on him and spoke to him in English, but Jounouchi poked him for it.

* * *

This is why story makers are popular. I was thinking about Seto-chan (because I was thinking about cute stuff also he was a chan) and Jounouchi-sama (because I was thinking about seziness, he was a sama) and this is what happened to Seto when they kissed for the first time, apparently... I will bold the words I put in.

One day while I was [**kiss** in the **[living room** a [**sky-blue [metal briefcase** fell through the [**roof**. It immediately [**jumped** on the [**wooden chair** and knocked over the [**duel disk**. Then it [**ran** out the door into the [**bedroom** and [**sighed** a [**tear** off the [**bed.** It then knocked a glass of [**salt water** off the [**coffee table**. After [**ten thousand** minutes of chasing [**the metal briefcase** through the house I finally caught it and put it outside. It quickly climbed the nearest [**year**.


	8. I definitely can't!

Friday Morning

I spent this morning in Jounouchi's room... oh my I'm blushing so hard! He had a terrible bruise on his face, and Anzu helped me make him stay in bed. I was going to cry if he didn't, and I did cry when Anzu pulled off his shirt and tossed it at the end of the bed. There were so many bruises, and not all of them were fresh. Some were memories of bruises, and some were full blown scars, one really knotted and old one running up and down his right arm. His eyes softened and he bowed his head. "I used to be a gangster," he said in that deep accent that makes a fan girl have chills run down her spine. "That's all. But then I met Yuugi and then I wasn't anymore." Gangs in Domino are more dangerous then they are in Tokyo, or all of the Kanto area... Because there are less of them, they must be tougher according to some exponential directly related formula or something!

"I'm sorry," I said, embarrassed my tears. I pushed him down, blushing so hard; his skin hard and muscled beneath my poking fingers made it hard to concentrate. How can I do this? I wondered. How can I put a damp cloth on his bruised cheek and ice on his ribs? It felt sort of like touching a god. There was one moment when I thought of kissing him, just to see if the fantasy could continue, but then it shattered as Yuugi came into the room with a small rap and the squeaking of hinges.

"Hey, Yuug," Jounouchi said to him. "Is there any word on Pegasus? Is he going to tell us anything else?"

"Actually, he called the hotel while we were out buying groceries for today's dinner." Yuugi didn't look directly at us. It was like he was saying to Atemu, I don't want to do this, but I knew what Atemu would say and I spoke for him.

"You have to tell them, Yuugi. No matter how hard it is." I covered my gaping mouth and suddenly understood. I spoke as myself. "It's still there."

Yuugi look askance at me, his head turned sideways like a dog's. "You sound just like him, Keimaru-san," he said quietly, and handed me a white envelope. "Here you go. It's from the same people as before." Before I opened it, I pulled the seal, now repaired with art glue, which dries clear and easily, out of my deck pouch.

As I opened the envelope, another card fell out. "Ah!" I screamed and dropped it onto the floor again. It was as if it had burned me.

"What is it?" Yuugi picked it up carefully and flipped it over. "It's another seal of Orichalcous." I pulled out a letter from the envelope. It had the cutouts of random letters on it.

"It looks like a code," Jounouchi said from next to me on the bed. He'd sat up and was holding the ice to his face. "Doesn't it? Do you still have the other part?" I unfolded it and gave it to him. He put them together and held them to the light, the cutouts facing him. "Hey, I read this in a book but I didn't know it worked."

"You, reading?" Yuugi elbowed him in the arm.

"Of couse I read. It'd be boring sometimes otherwise." I had to giggle, and Jounouchi smirked as Yuugi giggled with me. "C'mere, Yama-san," Jounouchi said to me with a gesture, and I had to stand behind him and lean a little. Super super super blush! Yuugi noticed and smiled at me, and I pulled away.

"You read it," I muttered. He looked at me for a moment, but then turned back. "I can't read it?" he said as if it was a question. "Of course not, it's in English! Yuugi, I hope you can read it."

"Let me see...," Yuugi took it and leaned nonchalantly against Jounouchi's shoulder. "It says... 'It was a pity, but it can all happen again.'"

"What?" Jounouchi asked. I understood most of it though, and I repeated it for him.

"It was a pity, but it can happen again." Yuugi began to put it down, but with a gasp picked up the cutout page. "KaibaCorp!"

"What?" I asked this time, and took it from him. "It's a KaibaCorp watermark."

"What's going on?" Jounouchi asked, but I ignored his face.

"I need to be alone for a while, please call me when lunch is ready, Motou-san. Jounouchi-kun," I began, but crumpling the paper in a fist, I decided just to leave. I needed to think, and write it all down before I forgot. 


	9. This is my duel!

Afternoon

I came down to lunch when they called me, but the truth is I didn't feel much better. "We have to call Kaiba-san," was the first thing I said. Jounouchi would have glared at the invisible specter of him if I didn't place a staying hand on his lower arm, resting beside me on the table. I was blushing, but I made myself talk. "Jounouchi-san... Katsuya-kun," I began, "he needs to know. I'm not afraid to talk to him, if you are here... and the others as well," I added hastily. "But please don't fight." I was going to cry. So much had happened, and it hadn't even been a week. I'd been swept up into the magic surrounding Yuugi, just as these friends had the moment they met him.

Jounouchi tightened his fists and clenched his jaw, but he met my gaze firmly. "Fine, but how do we get a hold of him if he's in America? It's not like we can just call KaibaCorp or anything."

"I have his phone number," Anzu said suddenly. The whole gang gaped at her. "Pegasus gave it to me, after Jounouchi ran off on his little rampage."

"Wow, Anzu," Yuugi said, "you're always on top of things."

"I'll take that as a compliment." I always find a chance to admire Anzu. She isn't a duelist, and all she and Honda can do to support everyone is cheer them on, but I know that the Pharaoh must have admired her spirit.

...How do I know these things?

So we called Kaiba. Anzu turned on the speakerphone in her, mine, and Mai's hotel room. It even had a videophone, but since we were calling his cell phone, it wouldn't turn on I thought. It did though, and Kaiba-san glared at us all.

"How did you get this number?" he growled at us.

"Well, Kaiba-san," Anzu said with a smile, "Pegasus gave it to us!"

"I'm going to change it as soon as you hang up. What is that man thinking?"

I cleared my throat. I was sitting in the middle of the group, so I made sure to focus him on me. "Kaiba-san that may not be prudent."

"And why in God's name not?" If we were in an anime, there would have been an anger vein on both of our faces.

"Please don't take the lord's name in vain." I began slowly. "In any case, it has come to my attention that there is a traitor among your company. Either that or you like sending coded messages of doom. I thought it would be a good idea to warn you, but..." I moved to turn off the phone. Anzu looked at me strangely, Mai smirked, and Yuugi questioned me with his eyes.

"Don't you dare, or I'll come and get you. I know where you live."

"Oh, is that supposed to scare us, Kaiba?" Honda teased. "Keimaru's the only one who is allowed to do the scaring anymore. You gave up that right when you teased her."

"The geek squad speaks," Kaiba, said, annoyance evident. "Fine, if that's how it's going to be, why don't the rest of you leave and we'll talk."

"Fine." I stated plainly, and Honda-san turned to me. I raised a hand. "On my conditions. Honda and Anzu can stay. None of us three are professional duelists, so this is primarily important to us."

"What is?" Anzu asked me. I looked at her, trying to say, this is something I can't say out loud. It was, really, that the three duelists annoyed Kaiba-san so much with their smart mouths that nothing would be said among the little people. And also, the message of the past would leave them out... and also... but let my ghost explain.

"C'mon boys." Mai pulled Jounouchi and Yuugi out of the room. "Yama's finally showing some spirit, let her talk."

When they were gone, I turned back to Kaiba. "Alright then. This morning, we received a letter. This letter contained another seal of Orichalcos. It also contained a page of cut out letters. That page had a KaibaCorp watermark, and the first one had an Industrial Illusions Watermark."

"That's ridiculous. No one is allowed to use the watermarked paper except the main team. You must be mistaken." Kaiba was so angry now. "And what does this have to do with those two dorks?"

"Us three dorks." I corrected. "I believe that we will receive another letter tomorrow that will be from Paradisa. My parents used to work there. I think this is a challenge to our three duelists as well as a message to me. They must be saying that they will split us in half and destroy our resources to get to me. I don't want Yuugi-san or Jounouchi-san to know this, but some one needs to be ready."

"Why do these people want you out of all these dorks? You're relatively new." He smirked at me.

"I don't think I want to tell you. I called about something else anyway. I think you need to keep a close eye on your brother, Kaiba Mokuba-san. They'll use us to get to you four, most definitely. They want something from Duel Monsters players, and they goaded us with the seal cards. It doesn't make much sense to me, I'm rambling on it right now, but my gut tells me this time it's going to be us four who are really fighting. Someone up in the sky has decided to test the strength of the untested. It may be a man in a plane or balloon, or it may be heaven. But..." I sighed. "You already are annoyed enough with me as it is. I'm not going to say something that will set off your anti-geek alarms."

"I've had my share of geek moments," Kaiba said. He was trying to coax me into continuing.

"Fine. But you have to tell no one at all, not even Kaiba Mokuba-san. And you have to promise not to laugh." I leaned forward so my face was near the screen. "Pegasus called us this morning. And I had a dream. In my dream, everyone was gone, and it was only us four. Me, Honda-san, Anzu-san, and Kaiba Mokuba-san." His frown deepened. "We were all alone, and there was evil in the air. Then items appeared in front of us, we touched them, and there was a blinding light. The light turned out to be the sun in my face..."

He laughed. "That's ridiculous, you expect me to believe that?"

"Kaiba-san," Anzu said quietly. "She doesn't know anything about Mokuba. How could she dream about him? It must have been a vision from the future, like Ishizu's Necklace."

It was the wrong thing to say. Kaiba stopped laughing and glared. "I don't believe in that nonsense and you're definitely too old for fairy tales now, Anzu." He turned off the phone monitor.

"I'm sorry," she told us. "But Yama-san, why can't we tell everyone else about your vision?"

"I don't know... but I bet the Pharaoh had visions he didn't tell you. Because it didn't have to do with you then... and this doesn't deal with them yet. It could be fake... but I don't think it is." I cried. I've cried so much, I'm even crying right now.

"Hey, Keimaru-san, it's okay. Kaiba's just a jerk. You were really brave and really strong." Honda placed a hand on my shoulder as he crouched down next to my chair.

"It's just... I wish I could understand all this. I feel like I'm someone else sometimes... I feel like I know the Pharaoh, even though I only saw him on TV. I feel like his descendant, like Pegasus said. But then, all of a sudden, I'm me again. It's so hard."

"Why don't you talk to Yuugi about this? He must have felt this way at the beginning. He didn't even know why he suddenly blacked out when the Pharaoh was first taking over his body. But then they began to trust each other, and they share the same body instead of pushing the other out completely. Or at least they did." Her face was sad. "Any way, Yuugi's a better choice to confide in then in us."

"No he isn't!" I exclaimed, and she jumped slightly. "He isn't, because it happened because of him. He was the one who solved the puzzle and became the Pharaoh's light. But this is just happening to me, without any real way of understanding except to have it explained to me. Just like Yuugi and Atem had to explain everything to you guys about the shadow games and magicks. That's why you're the best!" I placed my head in my hands, resting my elbows on my knees. My hands clutched and ran through my hair.

Anzu hugged me. After a moment's hesitation Honda did too. It was nice, and warm. We were connected, even though I am changing so much. Because when they met me, I was still on the sidelines. "This is our battle," I said, with my eyes closed. "It will be to our glory, and then no one will see us as the pep-squad!"

Ah, I'm so corny.


	10. One monster is sent to the graveyard

Saturday Morning

I have cried so much lately. Did you know, it hasn't even been seven days yet, since I met Jounouchi in the park? And yet I am always crying because of him. I cry because I love him, because I must see him fight, because I don't know if he's my idol or I really want to kiss him.

People can tell anything to their diaries, right? Please say something, scribble back an answer like the English Tom Riddle's diary, or contain magic spells strong enough to stop the Americans' Superman... or just be a secret scroll in which Kami-sama has placed divinities. I need someone to talk to right now, and there is no one. Anzu, Honda and I realized our predictions were true this morning, for even though they were originally my predictions the three of us spent yesterday talking over the clues and facts, and we determined much more. According to the way the papers had come to us, Anzu believes the letter has to come from Paradisa, and now we are waiting for it. The six of us are holed up in the girls' hotel room, waiting for a message on the phone or a knock at the door. Honda blew up the picture from the company with the strange name, and I unroll it, to give us something to do. It is mainly a spiral, with a eye of Horus at the center, but there are other clues. One symbol we recognized from pictures of Atlantis, scrolling down the Internet page on the subject to figure out what it means.

I was looking at the original with the magnifying glass when the phone rang. I jumped, as well as everyone else, and the magnifying glass and Yuugi's water fell to the ground with a clunk-crash. At least nothing broke. No one tried to mop it up, but instead I put the phone on speaker and leaned back, my heart thumping so fast I couldn't talk. Honda and Anzu sat on to the bed next to me as Honda spoke. "Yes, who is it?"

"This is the front desk, a letter has arrived for this room."

"I'll be right down to get it," he said, and as he pushed the [END CALL button (the letters were in bright red, and though I could barely read it, it seemed ominous.)

"All right, Keimaru," he told me. "Don't move an inch until I'm back. Then we'll go out for ice cream or something, right?"

"Right," Yuugi chimed in, and Mai took his place as he left. My face heated up in my efforts not to cry, and I was amazed at Honda-san's ability to remain calm. He was much stronger then many gave him credit for. So was Anzu. They'd lived through four years of being only support, and therefore having to be as strong and do as much as they could.

But none of that matters now, cause Honda was kidnapped, as soon as he entered the elevator, and the letter sent us had the Paradisa watermark as well. Yuugi was the one who went and got it, after we'd figured out something had happened, but I can't bear to open it without Honda here. Jounouchi and Yuugi have gone looking for him, and us girls are staying with Mai so nothing else happens. I think I have to call Kaiba again, and I'll ask Anzu about it as soon as I finish writing this.

I'm so scared, and I don't even know who our enemy is. Was it always this hard at the beginning for Yuugi, to figure out the identity of the forces after him? It seems that they have greater control over us by keeping quiet.


	11. But I don't lose any life points!

Saturday Evening

Dramatics are usually something I spend time on. But today, I felt like I was playing a part, as an actress. As a writer becoming my characters is very important to me, but this had something wrong to it. I mean, we found Honda-san, and I kissed him on the cheek and cried in his arms. But when Yuugi was dueling to save him, I was the princess the whole time. Yuugi's enemy, with his bright blonde hair and green eyes... I blushed with the attentions he gave me. He'd said that he wouldn't duel until I was there, and he made me sit in a special seat, and while I was forced to, he was so nice. It was so desperately terrible, to see Honda standing behind him. That guy called him a sacrifice and said that by winning him in battle he could use his soul to restore me to my glory, and then I would remember everything.

All of my crying and screaming out didn't do anything, anything at all, to that man who called himself Adam, but would say nothing else about himself. He only talked about the princess the princess the princess. Honda-san spent the whole time trying to calm me down, but when he moved toward me as Yuugi's first monster was destroyed, I saw that his feet were chained to the ground.

"Let him go, let him go!" I shouted, standing up. "Please we didn't do anything to you, tell me what you want and I'll do it but let everyone go!"

"That's not the way it works." Yuugi's voice cut me to the bone. "Yama, if you really are a princess, then you have to believe in us. Just pretend, that I'm your magician and Jounouchi's your knight. This is almost the same as what Dartz did with the seal the first time. And I have less reason to let you down! He's not just your enemy, he's mine, for hurting my friends." Yuugi drew his next card. "Don't worry." As he looked to the center of the field where I sat, there was a smile on his face, and all of a sudden he was darker, and there was more hardness in his eyes, and he was Atemu. Not the Atemu from t.v., not the one Seto Kaiba searched for without understanding, but Atemu. And I think I really did have a vision.

Atemu was standing before me and he was looking at me, and then he said, "Sister, what's wrong?"

Set was staring at me with surprise in his eyes and he said, "You should have been my cousin's husband. I won't make a very good husband to you."

This was all wrong! I'm supposed to be the princess, not the queen, I suddenly thought, but then I had a shift in my sight, like I was shorter, suddenly.

"It seems you really are your grandmother's reincarnation," came a voice from behind. I looked to see the keeper of the Millinium Key. "Are you pleased with what you asked me to discover."

"Which one is me?" I gasped out in horror, and realized I'd said it out loud. Out loud, though, meant I was in the real world, and I slumped back in my seat, shivering and sweaty.

"What did you do to her?" I heard Yuugi ask Adam, but there was only laughter in return, no answers.

"Nothing at all. She's simply starting to remember her ancient past."

"What's in this for you?" With my hands around me and my face covered in sweaty black (so ugly, it felt like then, but I love my hair) I couldn't see Yuugi, but I understood what his face must look like, and I made myself sit up properly.

"I'm fine." I stated before Adam could answer.

"No, he has to talk!" Yuugi told me.

"Yeah, talk, you big bozo!" Jounouchi said, and that was when I realized Adam was speaking Japanese. I'd just been talking to him without thinking.

"Well, I'll take it then that you didn't read my letter. After all if you had, you wouldn't be asking such questions. It's your move, Yuugi Motou, so pick your card."

"Fine, I will!" I don't really remember much of what happened until it was over. Then Adam blew me a kiss and disappeared in smoke.

"The key's in the arm rest," came a musical laugh from the smoke, and then I ran to Honda with the large silver key. Ah, you know the rest.

It always surprises me, how muddled everything is until you try to sequence it on paper, and how clear-cut things become impossible to grasp as soon as you put your pen to the paper. But I'm not worried, so much, about that, as long as I can continue writing to you in some form or another. It seems important for the future, so that someday I'll be able to make sense of this all.

Today we all took a really long nap in the girls' room (the boy's room is being payed for fruitlessly), and then spent the whole evening at a karaoke bar (All the rage in Japan! it said on the glass front window), singing in bad English and worse Korean, as well as Japanese. It's after midnight, so I guess it's morning, and we fly at three.

Home, ah! How happy I am to see my parents again.

Ah, we never opened that letter, after all.


	12. Intermission

Prologue: This part is written in third person (but not omniscient, or is it omnipotent?) because at this point in the story, Yama is unable to write anything down. When she starts writing again, some details may get repeated in her attempt to figure out fragmented memories. But ah, it's a diary. Therefore, in any case, this chapter is labeled intermission. It is not a filler!

Dreams, An Intermission

Yama stood on the verge of a great desert. She felt strange, wrapped in white thinner than her bed sheets. "Yama." As she turned her headdress flew off and her black locks unraveled to seem to trickle down around her face. It was Atemu.

"Yama, can you ever forgive me?" He looked like he was about to cry.

"Atemu... you're Atemu, right?" She reached for him but her hand went through him.

"Yama, I'm sorry." It was as if he couldn't hear her.

"Atemu, what's going on?" She spun again, and saw Yuugi behind her. She turned it into a full three sixty to see Atemu's eyes glaze over.

"Yama, you have to listen to the new Paradisa. It's for the best. They'll..." It was as if he'd seen something, and he suddenly stopped talking, falling to his knees in pain.

"Atemu!" Yuugi ran to us and clutched at his friend's shoulders. "Atemu, your spirit should be at rest! What are you doing here?"

"They... they got me Yuugi! I don't know how." Atemu clutched at Yuugi's hand. "Argh!" His eyes glazed over again. "Do as they say. It will restore us to glory. My wife, my sister, my granddaughter, you must listen to me."

"Atemu, what are you saying?" Yama shouted, not understanding why she was crying. "I thought I was Set's wife. How am I yours? You died before that, you sealed the Millennium Items! Everyone's told me about it. They can't be right doing this to you. Fight, Pharaoh! You're the King of Games; don't give up. You're Yuugi no Ousama! Even Kaiba-san called you that! Right?"

"There is no fighting them. They are right, they will restore us to glory."

"Is that all you can say? You aren't the person I admired!"

"Yama-san, stop!" Yuugi shouted, and his voice wasn't shrill anymore. It had lost its almost boyhood edge. He was stronger in his dreams than his voice in reality made him seen. "They did something to him, they drew him out of the spirit world! His soul will fall into pieces!"

"Well, what am I supposed to do? I can't touch him, I can't shake reality into him, I can't say: You are the person I admire, and make him feel better, because it's not true anymore! I-I don't know what to do! I'm going out of my mind! Who am I?"

"You're Keimaru Yama! Not the princess, not a queen, but Keimaru Yama! Yama is a Japanese name; you're a strong mountain, a pillar of strength. People look up to you and want to climb as high as you are because you're so strong!" Yuugi started crying as he took the Pharaoh in his arms and laid him on the ground. Atemu was staring blankly, not resisting, not talking anymore. "And that's why Jounouchi likes you so much, because you believe in him and heal his wounds."

"Ah!" He had struck to the bone. "He said that? I thought... doesn't he like Mai?" She gulped.

"No, he doesn't. They kissed, once, but she's begun to grow up. She's a lot older than the rest of us, and she fells stretched around us. I know it. Soon she'll drive off and be gone for a while." He smiled at her through his tears. "But she'll come back, cause we're friends, no matter what, and sometimes you need to feel safe."

"Yuugi..." They both leaned over Atemu, tears pouring down and pooling under Yama's chin, so that there was a coldness over her throat. She was so afraid. What were these people doing to the Pharaoh.

"I'm here, Pharaoh. Yami, Atemu, I'm here."

"Yuugi," Atem raised a hand to touch Yuugi's face. "Yuugi, you must protect her. Protect Anzu and Honda... they have the last pieces of my soul."

"What do you mean?"

"The strong friendships we developed, they made a great bond that had nothing to do with Egypt or Duel Monsters. Because of that, they are links to this world that were used to draw me away from the spirit world and into the world of dreams. The ones who call themselves Paradisa now, they think that by sacrificing them, they can send our souls to the past, and bring me back to life as well as my sister."

"Yama is your sister?"

"No, her name was Yamket." He winced, and drew his body into himself. "You must listen to them," he said one last time, and then it was as if he'd been blown away in the wind.

"Will we remember this in the morning?" She asked Yuugi this question sincerly. Yama didn't know what to trust.

"If one of us doesn't, we'll have to tell the other right away, promise?"

"Promise." Yama heard a voice calling her. "It's Jounouchi-san."

"And Anzu," Yuugi added as he listened as well. "I guess it's morning."

They both woke up, sweaty, cold, and crying. Jounouchi took Yama in his arms as she saw Yuugi surrounded by Anzu and Honda. "Yama, are you alright? Yama?"

"Yuugi..."

"Yuugi's fine, he's fine, see?" He helped her sit up slowly. His strong arms were trembling. She could see Yuugi, and she sighed in relief.

"Atemu," he whispered.

"We'll save him, right, Jounouchi-san?" she replied.

"Atemu?" Jounouchi asked. "Yama!" She was slipping back into darkness. He massaged her hands, trying to create a stronger circulation. "We'll save him, alright, wake up! Wake up!" But she found that she fell asleep again. Dreaming in color was so difficult. Hadn't she been wearing white?


	13. A slight Adrogeny

Monday Morning (because of the time zones, they skipped a day)

When I opened my eyes this morning, it was the dead of night. I felt as if I was sinking into darkness. I must have cried out, 'help' or some such yearning, because all of a sudden there was light. It was Jounouchi... he was there suddenly, and I couldn't move at all, not even turn my head, I was so tired.

"Yama?" I tried to move even my mouth (I did cry out after all) but I couldn't. "Yama?" His voice was then more urgent, and he touched my shoulder. Then I could gasp and writhe beneath his grasp (ah, I love to write of pain, you know I am an amature writer), and after that I was shuddering in his arms. He was hugging me! I still blush thinking of it... next we looked seductively into each other's eyes and then we kissed!

Oh, we didn't really... I'm such a tease. But we could of, if his voice didn't call Anzu into the room. I can't imagine what she thought, but Jounouchi released me. I plopped back down onto the bed with a loud oomphing noise. He was most definitely blushing! I'm such a giggling school girl. But down to business. I had a dream, last night? Time zones are so strange a thing... We skipped over Sunday completely on our way back... when I was unconcious... and Jounouchi punched Kaiba and made him take us back to Japan since I didn't have a medical card on me (which was really stupid, considering the circumstances around us). Yuugi must of woken up after that... that thing that happened... I can't really remember it well enough to write it down! It's there, I know it all, but I can't write it down... but after that, I know I fell into REM somehow, because I was in Egypt, with Set. It must have been around the same time he came into the hotel room and saw me lying there, writhing and sweating (or maybe not... it's artistic license)...

I'm so excited, I'm writing in left to right katakana and hirigana... I don't know why, I have all my words messed up some how... written with english letters and something in between when my mind starts to fade... it looks like hiroglyphics, I guess.

I'm so tired... but Yuugi-kun says it's because I got stuck in between the real world and the dream place we were in. He looked at me for a long time then said to go back to sleep. I started to talk, but then Honda thrust my journal and special red pen into my hands. "I didn't read it," he said, "just thought you might want to collect your thoughts." I smiled at him as he left. Out of all of them, I think I have the best connection with him. It's as if we are the same person, in the moment our hands touch, and we can hear eachother's thoughts. 'Thank you' I say, and 'Thank you,' he replies. 'We can talk tomorrow.' I need to sleep now...


	14. I am not alone in this duel, perhaps

Kaiba came to see me. Darling Diary, that man is so scary. He is a man, he's the same age as Mai, twenty at least? I don't know, maybe he is only seventeen/eighteen and just really old seeming. Mokuba is 14 now, right? My memories not what it should be... maybe it's thirteen. But he's really smart, he skipped a grade (twice!). I am terrible at at school. So Mokuba is coming to high school early. I hope he'll help me with my homework. 

Wait, wait, wait! What am I doing? I don't get it at all, why Kaiba came that is. I ended up with an IV in my arm and oxygen tubes in my nose (so uncomfortable) because the doctors don't understand shadow magic. If we'd mentioned it they'd all have gone and taken us away from our parents and do physcalogical tests or something! Ahh!

Kaiba walks into a room like he owns it. It's thrilling, and the fangirl in me would be screaming and running in circles if I hadn't just almostkissed Joey. And since I had tubes sticking out of me. It's hard to talk while you're using oxygen, it's worse then a stuffy nose. He must have known, because he stared at me until I leaned back against the pillows. Then Mokuba came in. He is so small, but the look in his eyes is all Kaiba. I wanted to ask "How can you have those eyes when you hate the man who gave them to you?" But of course I didn't. I don't know enough about anything to talk that way, especially when there's a gagging stream of oxygen from my nose to my throat when I open my mouth.

"Kaimaru-san." He nodded and I coughed, so anti-climatic. Mokuba brought me water and I gave him a watery smile. Smiling was good, I thought then, I'll do it more often. So I was smiling when Kaiba placed a manila folder in my lap. I opened it slowly with one hand, holding the water in the other. "I've brought your letter of acceptance into a new school I'm opening. If this is really going to be real, if you really are the princess of Egypt, then as your high priest I have a responsibility to keep you safe. And teach you to protect yourself." He huffed and glared at me. I closed my mouth (it was hard to breath anyway). "Don't get me wrong you're all crazy, but I went to ancient Egypt and I saw two Yuugis and I've fought many shadow duels of my own! Leave that out of it if you will. But someone is after you, and I am a man above all else! So, this is how I am." I must have been crying, because all of a sudden there was a kerchief at my face and a smiling Mokuba at the edge of the bed.

"Don't tell Yuugi," Mokuba warned, "or Seto-nii will deny everything, and that would lead to a lot of confusion."

"Of course not," I said with a breathy chuckle. "Kaiba-chama." He frowned at me. "I'm sorry, I think I'm high on the oxygen, but they won't let me take it out." Mokuba reached up to my face, and held it in place, bending me down. Then he pulled the tube out with his teeth. He really did, really really really really really ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! What do I do in a situation like that? I start crying. I just sit there and cry into his chest. He is two years younger then me, or is it one, or is it three? I just sit there crying and there are two tender faces staring at me. I know these faces were never seen by anyone before. I feel like what the Americans call a Mary-Sue, a fiction character who is too good to be real. But I have no magic in myself, other then the magic others give to me. That these two would see me as a woman (not a friend, not just a little girl, not just a lady princess) hurt my heart so much.

"Kaimaru-san," Seto told me firmly as I leaned away again, blushing in my shame, that perfect Japanese shame, "Jounouchi is a bake inu, but you should trust him. I'll see you at the start of the semester. Everyone else will have to duel their way in, so don't give up the secret."

"Never, thank you, Kaiba-san. Please take care of me." Mokuba pulled out my IV and placed my hand on a cotton ball and then that on the wound.

"You'll be out of here soon, so wipe your tears before the geeks come back." He left with that scowl on his face that made it seemed like nothing ever happened. I have been looking at the manila folder for a while, and guess what. There's a dorm for Shadow Duelists. It's weird, but in the papers Kaiba-san says that it is a "applicable solution to advanced duelists with unique personalities" or something like that. I'm like huh? But I want to giggle and spin in circles again. I'm in the Slyfer dorm, but how did he know that Slyfer was my favorite? He's made the Slyfer dorm the worst, just for me (because I'm terrible at dueling), even though he likes it (of course Obelisk is the top). But you know, I think something great will come of each of the level-oriented dorms. I can't wait for it to start, but you know, I am afraid that all this will be over by then, and Duel Academy will only be the place that I will recover at.

I hate premonitions, as a writer, because then you can never decide which way to go, following it or against it to tempt fate. Can it be somewhere in the middle?


	15. Alone

Tuesday Morning

I am out of the hospital, and my parents are doting on me. They don't discuss my going to America in front of me, but when I was in my room, changing into comfortable clothing, I heard them berating Yuugi-san and Jounouchi-kun. I opened the door a little, and what did I see? I can see you looking sternly at me and saying "How would I know, I can't see!"

Jounouchi bowed to my parents, and he came and said goodbye, without complaining. There was a great sadness in his eyes, the sadness Japanese rock fan girls drool over. Did he think that it was all his fault? I tried to reach for him, but my mother's hand on my arm stopped me. I didn't even get to tell him that I was going to Kaiba-san's duel academy. I had a wicked idea, from an American book I translated in English class. "Jounouchi-san," I called, and grabbed the folder from the table in my room, running to him. "You forgot this. The notes you let me borrow. Tell Kaiba-san I'm sorry I can't help him with his schoolwork."

"What? But--!" Yuugi pulled him away.

"Thank you for your hospitality," He told my parents, but as he turned away and only I saw him, there were tearstains on the collar of his signature blue collar. They were on their way to school.

My mother bought me ice cream, to get back into my good books, and let me lay on the couch wrapped in blankets and watch foriegn films without subtitles. I let the unknown words flow over my ears and blank out my spirit. I am so sad right now! Will I ever see Jounouchi again? I need him, I know it deep in my soul. I need my knight, my magician, and my high priest, because just because I don't hang out with them, doesn't mean I'm not still the princess.

Tuesday afternoon

I am very scared, they are coming. I will run away, but I will take you with me, and my deck. I will be on my rollerblades, so they can't catch me. The darkness of the shadows is so strong, why did I never notice it before? Was it because Yuugi-san was there, and all my friends? Can I jump out of this three story window? Sorry, goodbye for now.

Tuesday Evening

I have been running for five hours. The top of my rollerblades has cut into my skin and turned my socks bright red. I am safe for now, but I don't know where I am anymore. I think I'm near the docks, and if I could find a phone... what would I do? They wouldn't hurt me right? They just want to rewire my brain, and to do that, they would need them. Honda-san, Anzu, and Mokuba-san are in danger too. I can call Kaiba-san easily, even if they are monitering calls like they do in the movies. I just need a payphone... There would be one at the docks, right? I will keep running, for a while, then I should write out my thoughts again.

* * *

It took about an hour, and then I finally found a payphone at the docks. Right now, I am afraid for my parents, because I called Kaiba-san and talked to him. The first thing he said after I told him what happened was "Where are your parents?" What better sacrifices would there be then those who not only have a connection to the past but also brought you into this time? he questioned, and such. But he said he'd find them, and then he'd kidnap me and take me to his school. Even when he is teasing he's so serious. The whole time I was afraid of being shot at or something (what were they going to shoot me with? They play Duel Monsters). But the truth is, something did happen to me! Ha, a duelist appeared like that! I mean, he came up out of the water after he made it boiling hot. That sort of stuff belongs in an anime. My life may seem like a manga, but I hope not to see it when it's finished. I'll laugh at myself.

Anyway, I was still on the phone with Kaiba-san when it happened, and he told me to stay in the booth and keep the door closed with my feet. He switched from the line at his work to his cell phone, and those seconds before the payphone rang (I gave him the number from the words at the top of the phone) were very tense. I took out my cards and placed them beside me, ready to duel and defend myself with my supposed magic.

"Are you still alright?" came Kaiba-san's voice right away, and it triggered a reaction. I heard someone else's voice, instead of his, and then my body was glowing, and I blacked out. That's it, that's all I remember! Kaiba-san said later that I called him Set, and ordered him around. Ah, his face looked so angry when he remembered, but he didn't tell me much about it, just that the duelist was defeated, and then I fell unconcious and he brought me to his house. My parents are also safe, but I have not seen them since I woke up. It's nearly midnight now, but neither of us could sleep now. I think I will just sit here with him and maybe fall asleep watching television on his shoulder. Kaiba-san feels like a big brother. I blush as I write this, even though he's not looking at what I write. Can someone so serious and handsome that all the girls scream at really feel only like a brother?


	16. I play Blue Eyes White Dragon

Wednesday Noon

I fell asleep. I couldn't really help it, in the end, but when I woke up, I was embarrassed. I don't think Kaiba-san slept at all. In fact, I am certain that he was caring for me all night. I had another dream, you see Diary, and without a doubt I was writhing and fighting all night. I saw Atemu at the desert, and Set was standing with him, holding him up. He was in so much pain! They both were, but I finally figured out why I was confused about Yamket, my grandmother, being Atemu's real wife but also being Set's in the princess's vision. Set told me about the real world and the spirit world and how my memories had been confused.

When Atemu died, he left Set as king, and was locked into the puzzle. Set married Yamket in that reality, and Yamket, who was me, the younger one, became his granddaughter instead. But in the spirit world, Atemu went back to a point before Bakura and married Yamket, after which he and Set fought for the throne, and Yamket died to stop them from killing each other. I am still confused (actually probably more) but I'm starting to get it.

As we spoke with each other, night fell, but it wasn't really night. It was the Shadow Realm, and it was consuming me. It felt like only a minute before I woke up, stretching my hands out to Atemu and Set in complete darkness, but Seto told me (when I made him) that it had been several hours.

He makes me feel like an idiot, even though we are becoming closer very quickly, and I want to slap him when he doesn't talk to me, but today he made me breakfast (did you know that he's a vegetarian sometimes? He says it's to make Mokuba eat healthier, but he really does like vegetables better than meat. I like beef…). Even though it was nearly noon, I felt very blessed. He'd stayed up all night and didn't go to work this morning because he was with me. He kept Mokuba out of the living room when he woke up this morning too, and held me in his arms. Normally I'd be blushing as I wrote this, but I woke up with a feeling of perfect happiness and protection even after that dream.

I'm growing up. It's been a while, now, since I cried. At least, I haven't cried yet. It is Kaiba Seto that is the cause of all this! If I hadn't met Katsuya-kun first, would I have fallen in love with him? There is something romantic in the air, but it dissipates too quickly to be any more than a chemical crush. And Mokuba and I are best friends now. I hope this feeling continues until Jounouchi and Yuugi-san come looking for me, and then I hope to have a better feeling.


End file.
